


Angel Down, Angel Down

by FrozenHearts



Category: Final Fantasy XV
Genre: Angst, Background Gladio/Ignis, Blind Character, Blood, Canon Compliant, Creepy Ardyn, Delusions, Emotional Manipulation, Game Spoilers, Gen, Guns, Gunshot Wounds, Heavy Angst, Hurt, Hurt No Comfort, I Can't Believe I Wrote This, Implied/Referenced Self-Harm, Implied/Referenced Torture, Just in case because i wasn't sure how to tag this, MT!Prompto, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Sad, Self-Harm, Spoilers, Suicidal Thoughts, Suicide, Suicide Attempt, Trauma, magitek troopers - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-04-03
Updated: 2017-04-03
Packaged: 2018-10-13 02:19:37
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,423
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10504401
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FrozenHearts/pseuds/FrozenHearts
Summary: Prompto wasn't in his right mind when they found him.





	

**Author's Note:**

  * For [DragonGem777](https://archiveofourown.org/users/DragonGem777/gifts).



> I love MT! Prompto stories so I wrote one myself. Includes spoilers for chapter 13 in the game.
> 
> Just a warning if you haven't read the tags: this fic deals with suicide, so if that makes you uncomfortable, please back now.

The Niff base was drafty and dreary and made Noctis sick to his stomach the further they traipsed through the hallways. Magitek bodies lined the floor, oily blood spattered on the walls, the floor, any available surface. It didn't take long for the trio to stop at an intersection, Gladio guiding Ignis to lean against a wall as he not so quietly emptied the contents of his stomach.

They didn't blame him. The sound of his advisor retching was enough to make his skin crawl even more. 

"Apologies, Noct," Ignis moved to wipe the vomit that clinged to his lip. His fingers missed by a few centimeters.

"It's okay, Ignis," Noctis replied. He couldn't bring himself to look at Ignis's eyes, focusing on the bile on his lips. He couldn't look Ignis in the eye, he wouldn't. Not after Altissia, or this. Dragging a fucking blind man through a swamp and then an enemy base. 

All for what? To see him get hurt? To see him putting on a brave face when he tried to keep up?

"Ignis, I think-" Noctis started, but Ignis cut him off with a sharp hiss. Gladio kept a hand on his arm to hold him steady.

"I want Prompto to come home with us, Highness," Ignis's voice was cold, "He needs us now more than ever."

It was a sound logic. But Noctis knew it meant further risk. A risk Ignis was obviously willing to take, but a risk nonetheless. So they kept going, Noctis making sure to slow hid pace just a bit, putting Ignis between himself and Gladio for the added comfort.

The walls all began to blur into the next, and for a moment, it brought Noctis back to when they had first started their roadtrip; the hood of the Regalia was down, allowing the wind to blow through their hair. Gladio always sat in the back with one of his trashy novels, eyes always staring longingly at the back of Ignis's head. 

If Ignis knew how Gladio looked at him sometimes, he never let on that he did. Sometimes Noctis would see Ignis looking at Gladio the same way.

Prompto was always in the passenger seat, leaning over the side to snap pictures on his clunky old camera. A click of the shutter and a crow of delight as he would get up in his seat, twist around to show Noctis the image.

A cold draft pulled Noctis from his thougts, reminding him that they weren't in the Regalia. They weren't laughing and taking pictures. He was in an enemy base, and they were going to leave the enemy base together.

"C'mon, Noct," Gladio murmured, shuffling Ignis forward, "we should keep going."

Noctis hugged himself tighter, eyeing his surroundings with unease as he followed them. They went down dank corridors, tripping over twists and turns until they had to stop; Ignis held a hand up to steady himself against the wall, his other fumbling for Gladio's in the dim light.

"Iggy?" Gladio asked softly. He gave the advisor's hand a squeeze, "I'm right here, what is it?"

Ignis frowned, "Did you hear that?"

Noctis furrowed his brow, "Hear what?"

Ignis jutted his chin at Gladio as the pipes creaked in the walls, "That."

Judging by how deeply Ignis was frowning, and how white gis knuckles were from squeezing Gladio's hand, Noctis could figure out that Ignis wasn't talking about the Niff's plumbing system.

\--------

They ran when they finally pinpointed the noise Ignis had heard. The harsh mechanical cries of MT's echoed on the walls, scraping against Noctis's eardrums- Ignis startled after one particularly grating screech, and Gladio simply scooped him up and continued running.

Ignis stopped protesting when they heard Prompto emitting an unearthly wail.

Spurring himself on, Noctis skidded around a corner, latching onto the wall to steady himself as he gaped. Gladio's footsteps were ominous behind him.

"Noct, wha-!" Gladio cut himself off, clutching Ignis tighter to himself.

They were standing in the door of an empty cavern of a room. Wires and plugs hung from the ceiling, sparking and whirring menacingly. A cross shaped contraption sat against the far wall, slick with the black and red blood of whomever had been tied to it.

"P-prom...?" Noctis managed, his voice soft as he took a step forward. Oil leaked from another contraption to his left, a monitor of some sort knocked over to lay on it's side. The screen was cracked and playing a mumbling static.

"Shit..." Noctis heard Gladio mutter, but he ignored him. He crouched slightly, reaching out to feel the smooth metal of the machine.

Prompto was attatched to said machine, although with further inspection it was obvious he had managed to free his wrists. The cuffs were snapped in half, the left on dangling from the slab by a thread. Prompto was hanging off the machine, bent at the waist as he twitched involuntarily. Noctis watched with wide eyes as Prompto made feeble attempts to reach out, long pale fingers scrabbling for purchase against a dingy, wet floor.

It was pathetic.

"He's stuck-" Noctis fell to his knees, sliding his hands under Prompto's arms in an attempt to heave him into an upright position. His friend was dead weight. Prompto's breathing was harsh, his lips moving wordlessly.

Noctis was barely aware of Gladio telling Ignis something, of him coming to hold Prompto up. As soon as he let go, he grabbed at the cuffs around Prompto's ankles.

They were slick with something. Noctis couldn't tell if the liquid was black or red. It didn't matter. He had to get Prompto out, he needed to get him to safety, he needed to go home-

"Noctis," Gladio said suddenly, "We need to be careful. We don't know how bad the damage is."

Noctis pursed his lips. Right... Right. Careful. He could be careful. Closing his eyes, he breathed deeply for a few moments until he felt the familiar tug of the crystal and the cool metal of a dagger in his fist.

It took him ten minutes to cut through each cuff. It felt like ten hours.

When the left ankle cuff fell away, Noctis was able to see the extent of the damage. Prompto wasn't wearing shoes, his bare feet caked in dirt. His right foot was at an odd angle.

"Be careful when putting him down, Gladio," Noctis warned, "his ankle looks broken." 

It took some adjusting, but once Gladio got Prompto down on the ground, Noctis could see his friend's arms were covered in welts. A few were fresh, although the bleeding was sluggish. He counted at least five were beginning to get infected.

Noctis was glad there wasn't really any oozing pus to be seen. The smell was not pleasant.

"Ugh..." Noctis jumped as Prompto finally groaned. Good. It was good that meant he as alive. 

Alive was good.

Noctis leaned over his friend, ignoring the harsh red of fingers on his cheek, the necklace of bruises round his throat. Prompto was alive, he was speaking, he was-

"My... gun."

What? Noctis exchanged a worried glance with Gladio. It was okay. Everything was , Prompto was just put through a lot. 

"Prom, we're here to take you home," Noctis said, hating the tremor in his voice. "You don't need your gun."

Prompto shook his head, eyes squeezed shut as he reached blindly around him. His fingers brushed Noctis's thigh and the prince took the opportunity to grab his friend's hand.

"I'm right here," Noctis said, "You're safe, everything is gonna be f-"

" _I need my gun._ "

Noctis paled. Prompto had never snapped at him before. He'd never seen his friend so angry. Under the furrow of his brow, Noctis could see Prompto's eyes were hazy, his movements clumsy as he dragged himself up and pulled himself across the floor.

"Noctis, we should try to set his ankle," Gladio suggested. He didn't make a move to stop Prompto, however, the morbid curiosity obvious on his face.

"What is he talking about?" Ignis called, making Noctis just remember that the advisor was with them, sitting dumbly against the wall while they dealt with... whatever this was.

"His gun," Gladio answered, "I can't see it anywhere though."

Noctis let himelf watch as Prompto wheezed. His lungs were likely infected, and Noctis knew Ardyn enough to know that he didn't care about the state of his prisoners. 

It wasn't until Noctis saw the glint of metal in the shadows that Prompto said anymore.

"Have to... leave," Prompto coughed, "Get  _out. Leave, I have to leave-_ "

"Prompto, we're leaving now-" Noctis tried hopefully, face falling at the click of the weapon. He saw Prompto with a gun enough times to know. Prompto always said it himself.

If you were using a gun in battle, always aim to kill. Never maim. Never injure, because they might catch up with you.

Kill.

"The safety is off-" Noctis swallowed, his heart hammering in his chest. He felt like the muscle might break his ribs, rip through his skin. His blood was pounding in his ears. Gladio ran to Ignis, carefully shrouding him in his arms.

"Prompto!" Ignis shouted, his voice coming out as a whine, "Prompto, please-!"

Noctis never heard Ignis so distraught. Blind, he realized Ignis wouldn't be able to do anything. 

" _Have to leave, I have to they'll hate me, hate me, disgusting-"_

"Prompto we would never hate you, you know that!" Noctis yelled, "Stop this now and give me the gun!"

But Prompto was obviously not listening. His rambling echoed creepily, warbled pleas striking like daggers from the shadows. As Prompto placed his fingers correctly on the weapon, blinking back tears, Noctis thought he could see a flash of red.

"No!" Prompto retorted, "You don't want me like this, you don't! Mom gave me up... my parents didn't want me..."

Noctis's breath caught in his throat. Prompto never spoke about his family very often. All he could gleam from him was that he was adopted, but his adoptive parents were never home. Why.... why was he bringing them up now?

Why did Prompto think he was alone?"

"- take this drug, kill this man! Over.... Over....!" Prompto was screaming now, his voice raspy, "I couldn't do it, I didn't want to! Had to  _go had to... I have to leave you don't want me."_

Noctis pushed himself up as he saw Prompto hold the gun into  light. The silver was beautifully crafted, the barrell sleek and the handle made of leather; it was worn overtime with use. Prompto looked at it with an almost childish awe.

And then he shoved the opening of the barrel against his ear.

"Prompto!" Gladio barked, "Stop!"

"Worst case scenario, I hit the frontal lobe the wrong way, become a goddamn cabbage," Prompto laughed. The sound was empty, devoid of any sense. Any concern. 

"Prom-"

"Best case scenario I nick the spinal cord, snap it from the brain, right?!" Prompto cackled, "Ardyn would just put me on display!  _Display!"_

Noctis inched closer as Prompto kept rambling, "'Look at  the defect' they'd say, 'Stupid little defect, isn't even a  _proper MT. JUST KILL IT."_

The silence overcame them suddenly. It seemed almost chokingly thick, like you could push a knife through it.

That wasn't possible. Prompto couldn't be an MT- he  too happy, too nice and kind-

But it made sense.

In a sick way, it made sense. Noctis's chest felt heavy, as he practically crawled over to his  best friend. From the corner of his eye, he could see Gladio trying to console  quietly hysterical Ignis.

"Prompto," Noctis grit his teeth. The floor was rough against his knees as he leaned with one arm outstretched, " _Give me the gun. Now."_

They waited just like that for a few minutes. Noctis with his palm opened towards the sky, Prompto tapping the gun against his skull. It felt like days had passed, as they sat there, staring at the other. Waiting for one to give.

In that moment, Noctis could  see the red from earlier, invading Prompto's blue eyes as the milky white schlera became an inky black.

"Is that why you always wore your bracelet?" Noctis decided to change tactics. Keep someone talking and they'll soon enough forget their objective. "Is that where your barcode is?"

"Defective," Prompto hissed.

"And? Why's it matter?"

Prompto sniffed. Tears dotted the corners of his eyes as he curled in on himself. His shoulders were wracked with sobs, mingled with gulps of air.

"Defective, defective, stupid little defect."

Noctis bit his lip, "Not stupid. Not defective."

The silence came once more, as Prompto continued to cry. Noctis wasn't sure if Ignis had calmed , but he had Gladio with him.

Prompto needed him now.

"You're my best friend," Noctis said, "Y-you play hard rock music to annoy Ignis on long car rides. You flirt with Cindy whenever we stop at Hammerhead."

Prompto shook his head vigorously. The gun trembled in his hands as he lowered it to rest at his chin. 

Okay. Noctis took a deep breath. That was better. Noctis cleared his throat.

"Remember when we would play King's Knight?" Noctis prompted, "You always beat me. We would sneak cookies from the kitchen at one in the morning; you always sang that song a-about the Chocobos, remember?"

Prompto cocked his head.

"Ch-chocobos..."

Noctis nodded, daring to take a step closer. They were sitting at least two feet apart now, Prompto having lowered the gun into his lap.

The red in Prompto's eyes was eerie up close.

"Yes! 'I want to ride my Chocobo all day!' Remember?" Noctis knew his voice was shaking. Hell, his knees  shaking. His arms trembled under his weight.

Pursing his lips, Noctis sang the tune again. After a few seconds of silence, he repeated the words. 

Each time, Noctis rushed a bit more. Each time he finished, Prompto would look at him with those fearful eyes. Each time the blue would become more red. The white became more black.

Noctis was crying by the time he sang the song for the sixth time.

But Prompto didn't sing it back. He didn't acknowledge that he recognized the very words he made up.

Noctis's throat was sore as he screamed the words at Prompto with a newfound desparation and he screamed the words repeatedly as Prompto placed the barrel of the gun in his mouth.

Noctis was still reciting the song as he heard the bang, and he was still singing it as Prompto's body crumpled liflessly against the wall.

**Author's Note:**

> This is for the lovely DragonGem777, who has been the absolute sweetest and so amazing in her writing, go check out her work!


End file.
